Happy Weekend : Date Night at Justus Drugstore

{Photo via Flickr}

Last weekend I was lucky enough to meet up with a fun group at the wonderful restaurant Justus Drugstore in Smithville, Missouri. Our good friends live in Smithville, about 30 minutes north of Kansas City, and they have raved about this place since it opened. The chef, Jonathon Justus, transformed the space where the old Smithville Drugstore was housed in to an incredible place to eat and commune with friends. The meal is an experience in itself, with up to five courses, and lasting at least 3 hours. We sat down at 5:30 on a Saturday night, and didn’t leave until around 10.

The menu at Justus is seasonal, as one of their biggest focuses is delivering food fresh from local farms. The highlight of my meal was either the amazing goat cheese salad or my main dish of stuffed rabbit. Holy moley, it was good. Oh, and the jasmine tea rice pudding with lemongrass ice cream wasn’t too shabby either.

Justus is a wonderful place to host a celebration meal, and I think it was even better with a medium-sized group. We saw plenty of two-person parties, but we had a total of six. A little tip, if you’re going to have six or more at your table, on Friday and Saturdays you must make your reservation either at 5:30 or 9 p.m. But trust me, it will be worth it.

{Me and my cute date at Justus Drugstore, via the iPhone}